“Cadel Evans and [BMC assistant director] Fabio Baldato told me it was a good day for me to get in the breakaway and try to win the stage,” Santaromita said in a team release. “Today, finally, it was perfect. I had good legs and good tactics. I saw Scarponi suffering with cramps and Tiralongo was the best sprinter, so I took his wheel.”

The trio was at the front of the race but neither rider wanted to make a move over the final 10 kilometers of the hilly, 176km course. That finally changed in the final 200 meters, when Tiralongo surged ahead of his two breakaway mates.

Santaromita and Scarponi matched the attack, and the former was able to pass Tiralongo shortly before the finish line.

“This is wonderful,” Santaromita said. “Before coming to this race, I did a training camp alone. It’s not always easy being away from my family and away from home. But now I am happy. It’s a beautiful day.”

The race concludes Friday with the 169km stage 4, which ends in a 14km climb that averages eight percent.